This paper proposes a two-stage method integrating visual foundation models （VFM） and diffusion models. The segment anything model （SAM） as VFM is combined with the SegRefiner diffusion model to construct the SAM-SegRefiner framework for automated segmentation of edema， inflammation， and thrombus regions in histopathological images of hemorrhoidal tissue， providing a reproducible technical tool for the objective quantification of pathological morphology and its application in traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） syndrome research. Trained and validated on multi-center retrospective data， the SAM-SegRefiner model achieved an average pixel accuracy of 95.32% and a mean intersection over union （mIoU） of 66.81% on an independent test set， significantly outperfor-ming comparative models such as U-Net， MixU-Net， and SAM-Med2D， and also demonstrating robust cross-center generalization capability. Furthermore， by correlating the quantitatively segmented results from the model with the patients' TCM syndrome types， the potential associations between pathomorphological features and TCM syndrome differentiation have been explored. The analysis revealed no statistically significant differences in the degree of inflammatory infiltration and thrombus formation among different syndrome types， suggesting a complex relationship between local pathological changes and systemic syndrome manifestations.

ObjectiveTo investigate the prognostic differences between primary biliary cholangitis （PBC） patients positive for different autoantibodies and the risk factors for poor prognosis， and to facilitate early and effective intervention for PBC patients. MethodsA total of 141 patients who were diagnosed with PBC for the first time in Fenyang Hospital of Shanxi Province from January 2018 to December 2023 were enrolled and divided into group A （80 patients positive for anti-mitochondrial antibody M2 ［AMA-M2］ alone）， group B （36 patients positive for AMA-M2 and anti-gp210 antibody）， and group C （25 patients positive for AMA-M2 and anti-sp100 antibody）， and the three groups were compared in terms of general information， laboratory markers， and prognosis. The Globe score was used for prognostic evaluation， and a Globe score of<0.3 and the absence of liver cirrhosis at the time of confirmed diagnosis were defined as good prognosis， while a Globe score of ≥0.3 or the presence of liver cirrhosis at the time of confirmed diagnosis were defined as poor prognosis. A one-way analysis of variance was used for comparison of normally distributed continuous data between multiple groups， and the least significant difference t-test was used for further comparison between two groups； the Kruskal-Wallis H test was used for comparison of non-normally distributed continuous data between multiple groups， and the Dunn’s multiple test was used for further comparison between two groups； the chi-square test was used for comparison of categorical data between groups. The univariate and multivariate Logistic regression analyses were used to investigate the influencing factors for the prognosis of PBC patients； the receiver operating characteristic （ROC） curve was plotted， and the area under the ROC curve （AUC） was calculated. ResultsCompared with group A， groups B and C had a significantly higher proportion of male patients， a significantly higher detection rate of liver cirrhosis， significantly higher levels of ALT， TBil， and ALP， and significantly lower levels of PLT and Alb （all P<0.05）. The Globe score was calculated based on related indicators after treatment with ursodeoxycholic acid （UDCA） for 1 year， and the results showed that there was a significant difference in prognosis between the three groups （P<0.001）， and compared with group A， groups B and C had a significantly higher proportion of patients with a Globe score of ≥0.3 （P<0.05） and a significantly higher rate of suboptimal response to UDCA （P<0.05）. The univariate Logistic regression analysis showed that anti-gp210 antibody， anti-sp100 antibody， UDCA response， PLT， Alb， ALT， TBil， and ALP were associated with the prognosis of PBC patients （all P<0.05）. The variables meeting related conditions were included in the multivariate Logistic regression analysis， and the results showed that anti-gp210 antibody （odds ratio ［OR］=4.959， 95% confidence interval ［CI］： 1.112 — 22.122， P=0.036）， anti-sp100 antibody （OR=21.666， 95%CI： 1.542 — 304.449， P=0.023）， Alb （OR=0.899， 95%CI： 0.814 — 0.994， P=0.038）， PLT （OR=0.974， 95%CI： 0.963 — 0.985， P<0.001）， and UDCA response （OR=10.275， 95%CI： 1.047 — 100.831， P=0.046） were independent influencing factors for the prognosis of PBC patients. The ROC curve analysis showed that PLT had the best performance in predicting the prognosis of PBC patients， with an AUC of 0.824， a sensitivity of 85.7%， and a specificity of 71.7%. ConclusionPatients with dual positivity for AMA-M2 and anti-gp210 antibody， as well as those with dual positivity for AMA-M2 and anti-sp100 antibody， tend to have a poorer prognosis and a higher rate of suboptimal response to UDCA. Furthermore， positivity for anti-gp210 antibody， positivity for anti-sp100 antibody， thrombocytopenia， hypoalbuminemia， and suboptimal response to UDCA all indicate poor clinical prognosis.

Objective:To evaluate the expression characteristics of the FBJ murine osteosarcoma viral oncogene homolog B(FOSB)gene in immunoglobulin A nephropathy(IgAN)and common chronic kidney diseases(CKDs),and to determine its value as a potential key candidate gene or biomarker.Methods:The RNA sequencing datasets for IgAN,diabetic kidney disease(DKD),membranous nephropathy(MN),and minimal change disease(MCD)glomerular samples were downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus(GEO)database.The feature genes for CKD were identified using machine learning methods including least absolute shrinkage and selection operator(LASSO)regression,random forest(RF),and support vector machine(SVM).Gene Ontology(GO)functional enrichment and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG)signaling pathway enrichment analyses were performed on the identified IgAN feature genes.The"pROC"package was used to plot the receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curves to evaluate the diagnostic efficacy of IgAN feature genes.The gene with the highest diagnostic value was selected for Gene Set Enrichment Analysis(GSEA)and correlation analysis with core immune cells in IgAN.Clinical correlation analysis between the FOSB expression level in kidney tissue and renal function was performed using the Nephroseq v5 platform.Kidney tissue samples were collected from 5 cases of IgAN patients,DKD patients,MCD patients,and MN patients,respectively,along with 5 samples of adjacent normal kidney tissues(control group).Immunohistochemistry staining method was used to detect the expression levels of FOSB protein in tissue samples in various groups.Results:A total of 110 differentially expressed genes(DEGs)were identified in IgAN glomeruli,among which FOSB,NR4A2,and DUSP1 were identified as the feature genes.Compared with control group,the expression level of FOSB mRNA in IgAN group was significantly decreased(P＜0.05).The GO fuctional enrichment analysis results revealed that these IgAN feature genes were primarily enriched in biological processes related to dopamine biosynthesis,midbrain dopaminergic neuron differentiation,peptidyl-serine/threonine dephosphorylation,and response to corticosterone.The KEGG signaling pathway enrichment analysis results showed that the DEGs were significantly enriched in cocaine addiction,amphetamine addiction,interleukin 17(IL-17)signaling pathway,aldosterone synthesis and secretion,and serotonergic synapse.The ROC curve analysis results demonstrated that FOSB showed high diagnostic accuracy for IgAN.GSEA analysis revealed that arginine and proline metabolism,butyrate metabolism,erythroblastic leukemia viral oncogene homolog(ERBB)signaling pathway,mitogen-activated protein kinase(MAPK)signaling pathway,and fructose and mannose metabolism pathways were enriched in FOSB high-expression group,while allograft rejection,extracellular matrix receptor interaction,and type 1 diabetes pathways were significantly enriched in FOSB low-expression group.The immune cell infiltration analysis results identified natural killer cells,neutrophils,and M1 macrophages as core immune cells in IgAN,and the expression of FOSB gene was positively correlated with neutrophil infiltration(r=0.42,P＜0.05).The immunohistochemistry analysis results demonstrated that compared with control group,the expression level of FOSB protein in glomeruli of the patients in IgAN,DKD,MN,and MCD groups were significantly decreased(P＜0.05).Conclusion:The expressions of FOSB gene in the glomeruli tissue of IgAN,DKD,MN,and MCD patients ware decreased,suggesting FOSB may represent a potential biomarker for IgAN.

Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) mutations play a role as a driver gene in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Patients with advanced NSCLC harboring HER2 mutations exhibit poor responses to conventional chemotherapy and immunotherapy, hence targeted therapies against HER2 are under extensive investigation. This review analyzes the biological characteristics of HER2, an overview of clinical trials for targeted therapy drugs, including monoclonal antibodies, tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs), and antibody-drug conjugate, and research directions for drug resistance in NSCLC. Currently, Pyrotinib and Trastuzumab deruxtecan have been approved for the treatment of advanced NSCLC with HER2 mutations, suitable for patients who have failed standard therapy, which is far from meeting the clinical demands. Novel selective HER2 TKIs are gradually emerging. Future exploration trends are gradually shifting from single drugs to combination strategies, and are exploring more precise selection strategies as well as research on resistance mechanisms. These studies will provide a theoretical basis for clinical treatment strategies for advanced NSCLC with HER2 mutations, promoting the development of personalized therapy.
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Humans ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung/pathology* ; Lung Neoplasms/pathology* ; Receptor, ErbB-2/metabolism* ; Mutation ; Molecular Targeted Therapy ; Protein Kinase Inhibitors/therapeutic use* ; Antineoplastic Agents/therapeutic use*

BACKGROUND: It is inaccurate to reflect the level of dust exposure through working years. Furthermore, identifying a predictive indicator for lung function decline is significant for coal miners. The study aimed to explored whether club cell secretory protein (CC16) levels can reflect early lung function changes. METHODS: The cumulative respiratory dust exposure (CDE) levels of 1,461 coal miners were retrospectively assessed by constructed a job-exposure matrix to replace working years. Important factors affecting lung function and CC16 were selected by establishing random forest models. Subsequently, the potential of CC16 to reflect lung injury was explored from multiple perspectives. First, restricted cubic spline (RCS) models were used to compare the trends of changes in lung function indicators and plasma CC16 levels after dust exposure. Then mediating analysis was performed to investigate the role of CC16 in the association between dust exposure and lung function decline. Finally, the association between baseline CC16 levels and follow-up lung function was explored. RESULTS: The median CDE were 35.13 mg/m³-years. RCS models revealed a rapid decline in forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in the first second (FEV₁), and their percentages of predicted values when CDE exceeded 25 mg/m³-years. The dust exposure level (<5 mg/m³-years) causing significant changes in CC16 was much lower than the level (25 mg/m³-years) that caused changes in lung function indicators. CC16 mediated 11.1% to 26.0% of dust-related lung function decline. Additionally, workers with low baseline CC16 levels experienced greater reductions in lung function in the future. CONCLUSIONS CC16 levels are more sensitive than lung indicators in reflecting early lung function injury and plays mediating role in lung function decline induced by dust exposure. Low baseline CC16 levels predict poor future lung function.
Uteroglobin/blood* ; Humans ; Dust/analysis* ; Occupational Exposure/analysis* ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Adult ; Retrospective Studies ; Lung Injury/chemically induced* ; Coal Mining ; Biomarkers/blood* ; China/epidemiology* ; Air Pollutants, Occupational ; Female

OBJECTIVES: We propose a novel deep learning segmentation algorithm (DSRF) based on multi-scale supervision and residual feedback strategy for precise segmentation of the optic chiasm and optic nerves in CT images of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients. METHODS: We collected 212 NPC CT images and their ground truth labels from SegRap2023, StructSeg2019 and HaN-Seg2023 datasets. Based on a hybrid pooling strategy, we designed a decoder (HPS) to reduce small organ feature loss during pooling in convolutional neural networks. This decoder uses adaptive and average pooling to refine high-level semantic features, which are integrated with primary semantic features to enable network learning of finer feature details. We employed multi-scale deep supervision layers to learn rich multi-scale and multi-level semantic features under deep supervision, thereby enhancing boundary identification of the optic chiasm and optic nerves. A residual feedback module that enables multiple iterations of the network was designed for contrast enhancement of the optic chiasm and optic nerves in CT images by utilizing information from fuzzy boundaries and easily confused regions to iteratively refine segmentation results under supervision. The entire segmentation framework was optimized with the loss from each iteration to enhance segmentation accuracy and boundary clarity. Ablation experiments and comparative experiments were conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of each component and the performance of the proposed model. RESULTS: The DSRF algorithm could effectively enhance feature representation of small organs to achieve accurate segmentation of the optic chiasm and optic nerves with an average DSC of 0.837 and an ASSD of 0.351. Ablation experiments further verified the contributions of each component in the DSRF method. CONCLUSIONS The proposed deep learning segmentation algorithm can effectively enhance feature representation to achieve accurate segmentation of the optic chiasm and optic nerves in CT images of NPC.
Humans ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed/methods* ; Optic Chiasm/diagnostic imaging* ; Optic Nerve/diagnostic imaging* ; Algorithms ; Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma ; Deep Learning ; Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms/diagnostic imaging* ; Neural Networks, Computer ; Image Processing, Computer-Assisted/methods*

Objective To understand the pathogenic molecular characteristics of the latest prevalent Group A Streptococcus(GAS)in a suburban area of Beijing.Methods Throat swab specimens from children suspected of GAS infection in the outpatient setting of a sentinel surveillance hospital in a suburban area of Beijing from January 2023 to June 2025 were collected.GAS strains were detected and cultured.Antimicrobial susceptibility testing on 12 antimicrobial agents were performed,and molecular epidemiological characteristics of GAS strains was further ana-lyzed by whole genome sequencing technique.Results Data of 326 children suspected of GAS infection in outpatient setting were collected.A total of 41 GAS strains were detected and cultured,with a detection rate of 12.58％.The proportions of children with anterior cervical lymph node enlargement,tonsil congestion,and jaw congestion in the GAS positive group were all higher than those in the GAS negative group,and differences were all statistically sig-nificant(all P＜0.05).All 41 GAS strains carried both erm(B)and tet(M)resistance genes and exhibited a struc-tural type(cMLS)resistance phenotype.All of the emm12 strains were ST36,and emm1 strains were ST28.A to-tal of 6 emm12 subtypes and 1 emm1 subtype were detected,namely emm12.2,emm12.95,emm12.69,emm12.17,emm12.19,emm12.149,and emm1.12.Among them,emm12.149 was a newly discovered subtype.Nucleobase at the 175 100 locus in gene sequence had undergone an A→ T mutation.A total of 5 bacteriophages and 6 superanti-gens were detected.There were statistically significant differences in multi-nucleotide polymorphisms(MNPs)and insertion numbers in the genomes of emm12.0 and emm12 subtypes(both P＜0.05).The phylogenetic tree presen-ted a highly clonal group of 23 GAS strains in this area,accounting for 57.50％.Conclusion The prevalent GAS strain in this area is emm12.emm12.149 is a new subtype.The resistance genes and phenotypes are erm(B),tet(M),and structural type(cMLS).The genome has plenty genetic polymorphism,and the genome sequences of multiple GAS strains are highly cloned,indicating the possibility of clone transmission.This suggests that the sur-veillance of GAS in sentinel hospitals should continue to be strengthened,so as to provide theoretical basis for the prevention and control of GAS epidemics.

During hospitalization in the ICU, rehabilitation exercises were recognized as a crucial method for enhancing patients′ quality of life, and the volume of exercise was shown to significantly influence the effectiveness of rehabilitation for ICU patients. This article reviews the definition of exercise volume in the context of ICU patient rehabilitation, the current status of reporting, its correlation with patient outcomes, and the available measurement tools. The aim is to provide a foundational reference for quantitative research on exercise rehabilitation in ICUs within our country.

The C 2-C 7 sagittal vertical axis (SVA) is an essential biomechanical parameter for evaluating cervical spine alignment, and it is integral to the pathogenesis, progression, and prognosis of cervical spine disorders. This parameter is widely used in evaluating cervical sagittal balance and functional status. Internationally, a C 2-C 7 SVA of less than 25 mm is considered within the cervical range for sagittal balance, while values exceeding 40 mm indicate cervical sagittal imbalance or deformity. An increased C 2-C 7 SVA disrupts cervical spine biomechanics, leading to heightened static and dynamic loads on the cervical musculature. This, in turn, results in muscle fatigue and discomfort. In the short term, patients may experience axial neck symptoms, while a sustained elevation in SVA over time significantly raises the risk of cervical disc degeneration, radiculopathy, and myelopathy. Additionally, a higher C 2-C 7 SVA postoperatively places excessive stress on adjacent spinal segments, which can accelerate degeneration of intervertebral discs and facet joints, contributing to adjacent segment degeneration. Both short-term and long-term postoperative evaluations have shown that an increase in C 2-C 7 SVA is typically associated with poorer surgical outcomes, whereas effective control of SVA values is closely linked to better functional recovery. Therefore, in clinical practice, maintaining C 2-C 7 SVA within the normal range (<25 mm) is critical not only for optimizing treatment results but also for significantly reducing postoperative complications and improving overall patient quality of life.

Background and purpose:Gallic acid(GA)induces tumor cells apoptosis and inhibits angiogenesis.Beyond directly attacking tumor cells,another crucial aspect of GA is its ability to modulate and enhance immune system function.For example,it can improve T cell metabolism,alleviate T cell exhaustion,and promote the formation of memory T cell phenotypes.Although several chimeric antigen receptor T(CAR-T)cells products have gained market approval,the technology still faces significant challenges.These limitations include off-target effects,a predisposition to T cell exhaustion and so on.Moreover,similar to exhaustion,cellular senescence is a major hindrance that impairs T cell function.This study aimed to investigate the effects of GA on the anti-tumor function of CAR-T cells both in vitro and in vivo.We further evaluated the impact of GA on CAR-T cells senescence and memory phenotypes,as well as the impact of GA and CAR-T cells on immune cell infiltration within the tumor microenvironment(TME).Methods:Second-generation CAR targeting mouse glypican 3(GPC3)and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2(HER2)were constructed to generate CAR-T cells.CAR-T cells were co-cultured with GA at a concentration of 5 μg/mL,and flow cytometry was used to assess the senescence status and memory phenotype of CAR-T cells and their killing ability against tumor cells at different effector-to-target ratios.Senescence markers included p53,p21,γ-H2AX and senescence-associated β-galactosidase(SA-β-gal),while CCR7 served as the memory phenotype marker.A subcutaneous tumor model was established to explore the effects of GA on the anti-tumor function of CAR-T cells and immune cell infiltration within the TME.Results:We successfully generated human HER2 and murine GPC3 CAR-T cells,achieving a purity of 30%-50%.GA enhanced the in vitro killing ability of CAR-T cells targeting mouse GPC3 and human HER2(P＜0.001)at different E:T ratios,delayed the senescence of mouse GPC3 CAR-T cells(p53,p21,γ-H2AX,P＜0.05;SA-β-gal,P＜0.001;CCR7,P＜0.001).And GA promoted the differentiation of CAR-T cells toward a memory phenotype(P＜0.001).Additionally,GPC3 CAR-T cells inhibited tumor cell growth(P＜0.05),prolonged mouse survival(P＜0.001),and enhanced the infiltration capacity of CAR-cells(P＜0.001)and endogenous immune cells[CD4+T cells,P＜0.05;CD8+T cells,P＜0.01;natural killer(NK)cells,P＜0.01].Conclusion:GA can enhance the cytotoxic activity of CAR-T cells in vitro,and delay the senescence of CAR-T cells.Furthermore,by modulating TME,GA improved immune cell infiltration,thereby augmenting the overall anti-tumor efficacy of CAR-T cells.